I love my cats and I have three of them. They have the run of the house all the time. I don't let them get on the table or the counter-top when I'm home, but of course I find the occasional item knocked off the window sill over my sink, so I know they MUST go there when I am sleeping or at the office.

I also have two large dogs. When I am home they have the run of the house, they also have crates inside for sleeping and a fence outside.

BUT, my house is not on the market. I am fully aware that most people would walk into my house on any given day and think it was a zoo.

Recently I showed a home that had at least 15 cats and smelled like more. I really couldn't count them as they were running and hissing and trying to escape out the door. The sand boxes (and I didn't count them either) were not scooped, there were ants in the cat food and water had been spilled in the basement.

It's not my listing, so while it's not my place to have a sit down meeting with the owner, maybe they will read this post. I did give feedback to the listing agent and I will NOT be showing that house while it is still occupied again. My clients will not be making an offer on that house either.

We really couldn't tell much about the house because the smell prevented us from staying long enough to really tour it. The view outside was lovely. The garden was nice, the decks were fabulous. The price is good. It has a fruit trees, a carport, a storage shed and a nice lakeside dock and seawall.

If you are listing your home and you love your pets there are some things that are a must.

Feed your pets when you are home

Scoop the litter box

Crate or walk your dogs during showings

Crate your cats during showings.

And while this is just a suggestion... if you have 15 cats... just move first and then maybe your home will have a reasonable chance to sell.

I know I would need to move with 5 animals, have my carpets professionally cleaned and paint and removed drapes to get rid of the cat dander in my house. I do these things on a regular basis just because I want to live in a clean house, but again, my house is not currently on the market. And I do love my pets.

Comments

Great blog, Tammy. I totally agree! Pets are important to many people, but can be very damaging to a home. We have had rental properties with thousands of dollars worth of damage done to them due to pets.

Good morning Tammy. I find that most pet owners understand about taking care of a home. I have a number of tenants that have pets and take such good care of the properties, they will be good homeowners as well.

We just viewed a house with a client while the homeowners were watching TV. We didn't mind that their 2 dogs were following us, we did mind that their "stuff" was not picked up and we had to tip-toe around it. When the listing agent called for feedback, I told her and she said she gets that a lot, but feels funny talking to the sellers about it!

Oh, Tammy, I feel more sadly about the cats than I do about these people who obviously are NOT good pet owners. For shame! Can you imagine being asked to be the listing realtor? Oy vey! Cat urine alone is beyond me for being able to walk into a home. I have a hard time keeping up with old Rocky (our Tuxedo), who seems to pee more than I do and I drink a lot of water during the day! (Sorry, TMI...).

I have a listing coming up where the owner has a cat, but she keeps the litter box meticulously clean and plans to remove all signs of a cat living there for showings. I know most buyers can tell right away if pets have been kept in the home and it is sometimes a turn off.

Tammy, We understand the love of our pets. When selling a home owners really need to understand that buyers may not share that love and with all that was going on in that house - the home is likely not to sell ... or sell for substantially less.

Tammy Lankford You know I love pets but I believe they they should not be around for showings. It's distracting to the buyers who are either playing with the dogs or running from them. And 15 cats - I can't even imagine what the house smelled like. Those folks really need to move first - you're right.